Funeral Service For Pets Proposed In Avon

AVON — — Devra Sisitsky usually buries her pets when they die, but she made an exception when her English mastiff Maggie died last year.

But that decision brought regret. Despite requests to the veterinarian to return Maggie's ashes to her, Sisitsky never got them back.

Saddened by the experience, she was receptive when a fellow member of the Avon Rotary Club recruited her to join him in a new business venture last year.

Sisitsky and her partner, David Olson, are jumping into what one industry group says is a growing movement to provide pet owners a more personal approach to euthanizing a beloved pet.

"I was heartbroken," Sisitsky said about her experience "I was upset, and when Dave approached me, it was something that resonated with me. We are trying to take the trauma out of this."

On Feb. 26, Sisitsky and Olson received approval from the planning and zoning commission to open Beloved Companions, which they say will offer a full range of funeral services for pets, from cremation through burial and including help organizing remembrance ceremonies. They will also provide referrals for grief counseling.

Sisitsky said she and Olson are trying to provide services that many people want, but which veterinarians don't offer.

"We both have experienced current 'end of life scenarios' and have both felt that there is room for improvement," Sisitsky said. "The process now can be very clinical and administrative, and, as in my experience, proffered bad outcomes filled with regrets.

"We want to bring the human element into the process to console pet families and not rush through the grieving process. Sometimes it is hard to make decisions immediately after your family pet has passed. A little time, caring and explanation can go a long way."

Sisitsky said she previously worked as a consultant in the health care industry, developing medical facilities around the country along with designing and implementing managed-care products. Olson is in real estate. Olson declined to be interviewed.

Beloved Companions is not unique. Ronald Sagarino, a mortician whose family runs funeral homes in the Hartford area, opened Forever Companions Pet Loss Services last year and runs the business out of his home in Simsbury.

And according to the International Association of Pet Cemeteries and Crematories, such businesses can be found across the country.

"Our association is 42 years old and many of our members have been doing this for 30 years," said Debra Bjorling, the association's president who runs Hamilton Pet Meadow Memorial Park and Crematorium in New Jersey. Like Beloved Companions, her business offers a range of funeral services for pets.

Bjorling said there are about 600 pet cemeteries nationwide and that many offer cremation along with other services. She attributed the growing interest in funeral services for pets to changing attitudes and awareness.

"When I was younger, most people buried their pet in the back yard," she said. "Now, people have more pets in the house and they are treated more like family. And people are becoming more educated about what their options are."

Sagarino said he sees much the same thing.

"Fifty years ago pets were not family," Sagarino said. "Now, you sit them at the table. They are true family members."

As with human burials, how much you pay depends on how much you want.

Bjorling said prices vary, but that it is possible to spend as much as $1,000 to bury a pet.

People who want their pet's remains returned to them may choose from a variety of containers, starting with a simple metal tin and ranging up to small wooden chests and elaborate urns. Sagarino offers caskets as part of his business.

Sagarino branched out into offering services for pets because of his background in funerals. As of early March, he said he'd handled the arrangements for 12 pets.

"I do that and I understand that end of it," he said about organizing funeral services. "Veterinarians are only in the health care end of things. I have the knowledge and know-how to do funerals."

Cremating pets has been an accepted practice for years, but Frank Murphy, who owns Inserv Corp. in Manchester and has cremated pet remains for veterinarians for 25 years, said he has seen changes in how people approach the death of a pet.

He offers a viewing room where people can be present for their pet's cremation and typically gets a request for that about once a day. He has also expanded his offering of urns and containers for ashes.

"I call it going the distance," Murphy said, describing his viewing room. "People want closure. We don't offer funeral services, but it is a definite and growing trend."

Although Forever Companions and Beloved Companions offer funeral services, neither operate the same way as a funeral home. Sagarino works out of his house and goes to people's homes. He will also pick up remains at a veterinarian and arranges for cremation with a crematory.

Olson and Sisitsky plan much the same operation and the space they plan on using in Avon will simply be an office.

Sisitsky said they plan on doing much of their work at clients' homes. Olson told the Avon planning and zoning commission Feb. 26 that no cremations will be done at the business's office, nor will there be any services.